<p> Historically, the thermal photon inverse slope parameter has been interpreted as the thermalization temperature of the QGP. Observation of the thermal photon spectrum in nucleus-nucleus collisions at the ALICE and PHENIX experiments obtain the inverse slope parameter, but the obtained values are inconsistent with the thermalization temperature predicted by the hydrodynamic model. It has therefore been argued that the inverse slope parameter is not representative of the true QGP thermalization temperature because not all thermal photons are emitted at thermalization. This research will probe this assertion using an investigation of flow and nuclear suppression of thermal photons from ALICE Pb-Pb collisions at &radic;<i>s_NN</i> = 2.76 TeV and comparison to p-p data at &radic;<i>s_NN</i> = 2.76 TeV.</p>

<p> Oscillating single neutron stars are considered to be important quasi-continuous sources for gravitational wave emission and detection at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO). In order to detect these oscillations above the noise level in the detector, LIGO data must be compared to theoretical templates of the signal, which means predicting the signal amplitude and frequency range. In this thesis, we compute the two most important eigenfrequencies of superfluid neutron stars where the signal might be peaked. To calculate this spectrum, we first construct the background structure of the neutron star using realistic microscopic models of dense and interacting nuclear matter. For this purpose, we use the CompOSE database which provides an array of such models with thermodynamically consistent interpolation. The fluid pertubation equations of the equilibrium configuration, including superfluidity in a two-fluid model, are solved numerically in the non-relativistic limit, yielding the eigenfrequencies upon imposing suitable boundary conditions. We find that the modes of the superfluid star support modes that are very close to the corresponding normal fluid star, but there also appear one or two purely superfluid modes, the lower one of which is intermediate between the two lowest order modes of the normal fluid. Thus, in the event that these oscillation modes can be observed, we can confirm the theoretical prediction of neutron superfluidity in neutron stars. A part of the results presented in this thesis have been published as a proceedings article in Jaikumar, Monroy and Klaehn, <i> Universe</i> 4, 58 (2018).</p><p>

<p> Patients receiving Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) for late stage head and neck (HN) cancer often experience anatomical changes due to weight loss, tumor regression, and positional changes of normal anatomy (1). As a result, the actual dose delivered may vary from the original treatment plan. The purpose of this study was (a) to evaluate the dosimetric consequences of the parotid glands during the course of treatment, and (b) to determine if there would be an optimal timeframe for replanning. Nineteen locally advanced HN cancer patients underwent definitive IMRT. Each patient received an initial computerized tomography simulation (CT-SIM) scan and weekly cone beam computerized tomography (CBCT) scans. A Deformable Image Registration (DIR) was performed between the CT-SIM and CBCT of the parotid glands and Planning Target Volumes (PTVs) using the Eclipse treatment planning system (TPS) and the Velocity deformation software. A recalculation of the dose was performed on the weekly CBCTs using the original monitor units. The parameters for evaluation of our method were: the changes in volume of the PTVs and parotid glands, the dose coverage of the PTVs, the lateral displacement in the Center of Mass (COM), the mean dose, and Normal Tissue Complication Probability (NTCP) of the parotid glands. The studies showed a reduction of the volume in the PTVs and parotids, a medial displacement in COM, and alterations of the mean dose to the parotid glands as compared to the initial plans. Differences were observed for the dose volume coverage of the PTVs and NTCP of the parotid gland values between the initial plan and our proposed method utilizing deformable registration-based dose calculations.</p>

<p>This thesis discusses the process of extracting the longitudinal asymmetry, $A_L</p><p>{W\pm}$, describing $W\rightarrow\mu$ production in forward kinematic regimes. This asymmetry is used to constrain our understanding of the polarized parton distribution functions characterizing $\bar{u}$ and $\bar{d}$ sea quarks in the proton. This asymmetry will be used to constrain the overall contribution of the sea-quarks to the total proton spin. The asymmetry is evaluated over the pseudorapidity range of the PHENIX Muon Arms, $2.1 < |\eta|2.6$, for longitudinally polarized proton-proton collisions at 510 GeV $\sqrt{s}$. In particular, I will discuss the statistical methods used to characterize real muonic $W$ decays and the various background processes is presented, including a discussion of likelihood event selection and the Extended Unbinned Maximum Likelihood fit. These statistical methods serve estimate the yields of $W$ muonic decays, which are used to calculate the longitudinal asymmetry.

<p> The anti-matter counterpart to the electron, the positron, can be used for a myriad of different scientific research projects to include materials research, energy storage, and deep space flight propulsion. Currently there is a demand for large numbers of positrons to aid in these mentioned research projects. There are different methods of producing and harvesting positrons but all require radioactive sources or large facilities. Positron beams produced by relatively small accelerators are attractive because they are easily shut down, and small accelerators are readily available. </p><p> A 4MV Van de Graaff accelerator was used to induce the nuclear reaction ¹²C(d,n)¹³N in order to produce an intense beam of positrons. 13N is an isotope of nitrogen that decays with a 10 minute half life into ¹³C, a positron, and an electron neutrino. This radioactive gas is frozen onto a cryogenic freezer where it is then channeled to form an antimatter beam. The beam is then guided using axial magnetic fields into a superconducting magnet with a field strength up to 7 Tesla where it will be stored in a newly designed Micro-Penning-Malmberg trap. </p><p> Several source geometries have been experimented on and found that a maximum antimatter beam with a positron flux of greater than 0.55&times;10⁶ e+s^-1 was achieved. This beam was produced using a solid rare gas moderator composed of krypton. Due to geometric restrictions on this set up, only 0.1-1.0% of the antimatter was being frozen to the desired locations. Simulations and preliminary experiments suggest that a new geometry, currently under testing, will produce a beam of 107 e+s^-1 or more.</p>

<p> Fluctuations are one of the main probes of the physics of the new state of hot and dense nuclear matter called the Quark Gluon Plasma (QGP) which is created in the ultra-relativistic heavy ion collisions. In this dissertation we extend and improve upon the existing descriptions of heavy ion collisions in three different directions: we study the new signatures of initial state fluctuations, the propagation of perturbations in the early stages of the collision, and the effect of thermal fluctuations on the hydrodynamic expansion of the QGP. </p><p> First, in Chapter 3 we study initial state fluctuations by examining the complete statistical information contained in the two-particle correlation measurements in hydrodynamic simulations of Pb+Pb collisions at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (&radic;<i>s_NN</i> = 2.76 TeV). We use Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to decompose the spectrum of harmonic flow, v_n(p_T) for <i>n</i> = 0&ndash;5, into dominant components. The leading component is identified with the standard event plane <i> v_n</i>(<i>p_T</i>), while the subleading component describes additional fluctuations in the two-particle correlation function. We find good geometric predictors for the orientation and the magnitude of the leading and the subleading flows. The subleading <i>v</i>₀, <i>v</i>₁, and <i>v</i>₃ flow harmonics are shown to be a response to the radial excitation of the corresponding eccentricity &epsiv;<i>_n</i>. In contrast, for <i>v</i>₂ the subleading flow in peripheral collisions is dominated by the nonlinear mixing between the leading elliptic flow and radial flow fluctuations. Nonlinear mixing also plays a significant role in generating subleading <i>v</i>₄ and <i>v</i>₅ harmonics. The PCA gives a systematic way of studying the full information of the two-particle correlation matrix and identifying the subleading flows, which we show are responsible for factorization breaking in hydrodynamics. </p><p> Second, in Chapter 4 we study the thermalization and hydrodynamization of fluctuations at the early stages of heavy ion collisions. We use leading order effective kinetic theory, accurate at weak coupling, to simulate the pre-equilibrium evolution of transverse energy and flow perturbations. For the short evolution we can use a linear response theory to construct the pre-equilibrium Green functions. Then the energy-momentum tensor at a time when hydrodynamics becomes applicable can be expressed as a linear convolution of response functions with the initial perturbations. We propose combining effective kinetic theory with weak coupling initial state models, such as IP-Glasma, to model the complete pre-thermal evolution from saturated nuclei to hydrodynamics in a weak coupling framework. </p><p> Last, in Chapter 5 we consider out-of-equilibrium hydrodynamic fluctuations in the expanding QGP. We develop a set of kinetic equations for a correlator of thermal fluctuations which are equivalent to nonlinear hydrodynamics with noise. We first show that the kinetic response precisely reproduces the one-loop renormalization of the shear viscosity for a static fluid. We then use the hydro-kinetic equations to analyze thermal fluctuations for a Bjorken expansion. The steady state solution to the kinetic equations determine the coefficient of the first fractional power of the gradient expansion (&infin; 1/(&tau;<i> T</i>)^3/2), which was computed here for the first time. The formalism of hydro-kinetic equations can be applied to more general background flows and coupled to existing viscous hydrodynamic codes to incorporate the physics of hydrodynamic fluctuations.</p><p>

Thesis (Ph.D.); Submitted to Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (US); 1 Jun 2003. / Published through the Information Bridge: DOE Scientific and Technical Information. "LBNL--54350" Scielzo, Nicholas David. USDOE Director. Office of Science. Nuclear Physics (US) 06/01/2003. Report is also available in paper and microfiche from NTIS.